Caterpillar on Sunflower Stem

Recently, we noticed this sunflower plant about to fall over. Looking a little more closely, we saw that the caterpillar shown in the photo was "sawing" the plant down.
It looks like cutworm, but one normally thinks of cutworm causing damage at the base of plants rather than halfway up the stem. At any rate, it made for an interesting photo.

As far as how to control caterpillars, one way is to simply remove them by hand. This can be done in small gardens. There are also a variety of "Bt" products on the market. Natural enemies are not harmed, but caterpillars die after ingesting the bacteria (Bacillus thuringiensis).

ECHO Goes on Safari

‘Jambo!’ a khaki-clad safari worker says warmly, smiling and hurrying past the group of ECHO interns and staff on the canopied walkway. Overhead, lush tropical plants filter the afternoon sunlight, making the space cool and green. A silver-back gorilla sits off to the right, almost hidden by a screen of thick ferns and bamboo.

On Wednesday, March 7 the small party from ECHO set out on a trek to the wilds of . . . central Florida? As the guests of Wendy Andrew, Head Horticulturalist at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, the ECHO interns got a special behind-the-scenes look at the park.

Mainly, the group was interested in learning how the park selects, grows, and harvests forage for its hundreds of animals. No small task, considering all the feed is grown on park property and harvested by hand. Ruth and Aaron, the interns responsible for ECHO’s goats, say that managing the forage for our handful of animals is daunting and enjoyed learning from the folks at Animal Kingdom.

Also on the trip, the interns got to peek in on the innovative techniques Epcot is using to grow crops. ‘They’re a lot of the same crops we grow here at ECHO,’ Aaron says. ‘It’s cool to see how they try different things.’ One of the most impressive sights: a tomato ‘tree’ that produced over 1,000 pounds of tomatoes.

ECHO has record Farm Day!

With more than 3000 visitors to the farm on Saturday, March 3, ECHO had its biggest Farm Day ever. Harry and his dedicated crew parked over 1000 cars, and the bookstore and nursery had record-breaking sales.

There were workshops and demonstrations galore, including coconut shredding, cook stoves, and moringa processing. Visitors had a chance to taste toasted amaranth, fresh-squeezed orange juice, and pressed sugar cane juice.

The nursery crew hosted workshops on fruit tree care and gave tours of the arboretum, while Martin gave a talk on container gardening and Betsy lead an informative tour of ECHO’s landscaping. Stan hosted a forum on world hunger, and the Seedbank was open for tours.

Check out these great shots from the day’s festivities.